


Stupid, Awful, and...

by Morrigan2345



Category: Final Fantasy X
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Family, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Summer Vacation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-07-19
Updated: 2019-09-30
Packaged: 2020-07-08 11:41:20
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,879
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19869049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Morrigan2345/pseuds/Morrigan2345
Summary: This, to Rikku, is the beginning of the end.No dramatics involved whatsoever.





	1. Thirty Seconds of Air Time

**Author's Note:**

> Wanted to write something for this pair for a while, I think I pulled a lot of inspiration from different media sources- some blatant some not (pretty sure I read a fic with a slightly similar premise to this years ago and really enjoyed it.)
> 
> Anyway, hope you like it!

If anyone had asked Rikku, and no one did, she would have said- Would have _shouted_ \- about how stupid, awful, and generally ridiculous this whole thing was.

Again, though, _nobody listened to her._

“If anyone had even thought to listen to me-“ She was rudely shushed in the darkness of the plane, either by her mother or aunt because she could feel Yuna trying not to laugh.

“There’s nothing to listen to, just a bumpy start is all.” Her uncle said, she could see the vague image of his trembling hand clutching his wife’s so she immediately disregarded his words in favour of trying not to vomit.

The plane most definitely was not going to crash. And, she thinks as the shaking of the plane starts to die down and the lights come flickering back on for a brief thirty seconds, if it did she would die right and fully deserving of everyone one of her ghostly family member’s apologies.

As she looks over to where the pilot is she tenses even more, the man looks- if anything, bored out of his mind. Even as the amount of rain gushes in through his highly inappropriate open window. Logically she knows that at this altitude the window can remain open with out it killing them instantly, it would be completely fine with her that it remained open were it not for the rain soaking her half to death. 

She leans around again, eyeing the pilot- she hadn’t asked for a name when they first were all introduced to the death machine and its wrangler, too busy praying to whatever higher spirits were out there that maybe they might let her live to see her eighteenth birthday. She wishes she had asked the tightly wound, and what was probably the embodiment of what this vacation was going to end up as, tour manager that her Uncle Braska had gotten the tickets from.

“Mr. Pilot, Sir?” she’s never been this polite in her life but she’s not going to push her luck too much today, and distracting the pilot that’s trying to fly the metal tube is probably crossing that boundary. He doesn’t so much as turn, grunting that he has heard her, so she continues, “Could you, ah, _please_ close your godda- your window…please.” She says haltingly and after a pause- through the tumbling wind, she blessedly hears the beautiful sound of metal on metal as the pilot take his hand off the control ( _oh please god why did she talk, it was fine, a little water never hurt anyone, why couldn’t she just shut up for once in her goddamn life-)_ and winds up his manual (manual!) window.

For the first time she see’s his face, well half of it anyway, as he moves his head to the side, “Thanks!” she squeaks out and tries to melt back into the seat.

Sneaking a look at her cousin yields the information she was dreading, Yuna looks ready to burst- Rikku’s only saving grace is Yuna’s upbringing that’s preventing her from giggling. Too loudly.

Mr. Pilot coughs once, relatively loudly. Pointedly some might even say, and Rikku wants to loudly announce once more that this entire vacation is- “ _Stupid, awful, and fucking ridiculous”_ she mutters as she elbows her cousin in the ribs, making her heave out one remaining _funny_.

“Girls.” Yuna’s mother says but when Rikku looks up she has the face of a woman that is surely, absolutely, going to gossip. Lovingly, of course, but gossip goes round and Rikku- if anything, wanted a relatively peaceful summer vacation. 

This, she tells herself, isn’t going to set the tone for the entire trip- after they leave the plane and its pilot and the light hearted ribbing that’s mandatory in their family when someone does something (god forbid) embarrassing commences for a couple of minutes she’ll start formulating her plan.

An escape plan.

One she probably should have started working on a couple of months ago when her Aunt came over for a visit with some brochures, but Rikku’s nothing if not more than capable thinking on her feet. 

Improvisation it is, she just needs to get the hell off this plane.

“How much longer?” one of her non-yuna cousins asks, saving her the trouble.

She thinks she’s the only one that hears the pilot mutter that it’ll be half an hour more because it’s completely drowned out by her father’s loud exclamation- usually maintaining the fact that he has no damned idea how long, but pipe down until we do!

Sometimes, and this is only sometimes, Rikku thinks maybe, and this is only a maybe, that she might have been adopted. Yuna says a resounding no, but Rikku isn’t as sure as her cousin.

Regardless, thirty minutes is enough to block out everyone long enough to get an aerial view, she leans over her cousin to peer outside the window. The clouds are thick with rain but she can see streams and lakes as they fly over head, dock’s obviously connecting each island to one an other. The water is, admittedly, tolerable enough that she might dip a toe or two before she skedaddles and leaves her family to fend for themselves. She looks over at them all and feels bad, but, she reasons with herself in a fashion unlike her usual, they brought it upon themselves dragging her along on this all inclusive, no hassle required mess of a irregular family vacation.

She knows she sounds spoiled, is probably a little bit, considering most of her classmates and friends don’t even have enough of a family to even have a regular vacation with. Which is the exact reason she’s brought Paine along with them all.

Her and Yuna had both known Paine since elementary school, not friends exactly but Rikku remembers an arrangement set up by their mothers one evening for a play date.

Before Yuna’s parents had moved themselves away for work. 

Before the house Rikku and Yuna had played in once when they were all much younger and the entire lifetime Paine had lived there burnt down.

Rikku hadn’t see Paine after that, grandparents taking her away- until she had come back for their last year and had done nothing to catch Rikku’s attention but caught it anyway.

Other than having a heart of pure gold, Rikku also, in the back of her mind, was able to see how useful someone like Paine could be in this situation. After a couple of days with Rikku’s family Paine would start to see the immediate problem- the fact that there was not a single soul sane enough to be around without going insane yourself in the meantime. Once Paine realizes this, Rikku can immediately recruit her in the escape portion of the plan that includes, well- Survival.

See, Rikku is a carefree spirit, but that doesn’t mean she has no set up perimeters for success in her own life. They’re not rules per se, more like one motto she’s been living by since fifth grade.

Do what you want, but do it smart.

Befriending Paine had the added benefit of finding someone to talk about music and movies with, and generally have a friendship with, while also being able to not have to learn how to make a shelter in case of emergency, or a boat in case of flood, or- any other survival-ly things Rikku really wasn’t willing to learn if something like this situation ever arose.

Aka, an emergency survival situation.

Aka, being dragged to a semi abandoned island in the middle of who knows where with no escape plan if something were to go wrong. Which, it being her family involved in this island getaway, means something needs to go wrong- it’s just how and who they are.

Sooner rather than later Rikku is shook awake by the jostling of the plain hitting the floor so hard she can feel it trying to grab her non-existent tonsils from out of her ass. 

Description isn’t really Rikku’s strong point.

In any case by the time she’s even begun to hold onto the real world again she realizes too late that everyone has already exited the death ride and Mr. Pilot it staring at her with what can only be a look of pure disdain.

“Oh!” she shouts as she tries to correct her tardiness by slamming her head onto the short ceiling of the plane. Swearing, she grabs her belongings, one hand rubbing the side of her head the other-

Oh.

The other, now delicately placed in another’s larger, _sturdier_ , grip.

“We don’t need you falling, now that your back on land.” Is a voice she absolutely did not need to hear coming out of Mr. Pilot’s annoyed looking mouth.

“Aah, right! Now that we- I’m back on land… because we were- flying?”

“I- yes.”

“Okay!”

“Okay.”

Oh _god_.

He slips his hand out from hers politely once she’s out of the plane and grabs her bags that she’s neglected up until now, “I got it!” she practically yells at the man who again looks bemused, snatching her luggage and waddling towards the pick up van the only comforting thought as she hears Yuna’s healed feet trying to excitedly catch up with her is that she’ll never, _ever_ have to see Mr. Pilot ever again.


	2. An Encounter?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yuna/tidus side pairing by the way!

The ride to the “resort” was almost as awful as the trip getting to the island itself was, the only upside is that Rikku had seen a family of pudgy boar scatter into the dense forest.

Shrubbery.

She isn’t so much of a greenery girl as one might suspect, living in the actual desert and all.

There was also no infuriating and wildly distracting pilots on the second trip, the yunivers had to give her cousin a chance to bust her balls.

“Rikku!” Yuna had said, excitedly, for the third time, “Riikku!” she said.

For emphasis.

“What?” Rikku had been close to snapping, and would have if this was not her beloved and dearest cousin, “He was hot, I was momentarily distracted- it doesn’t matter he was just the pilot.”

“Ah…”

Interrupting her own father, Yuna slaps her cousin on the arm, ignoring the pathetic mewl that rips out of Rikkus mouth, “It’s why you should have gotten his number then!” she says, no less personally involved but reverting back to her slightly more composed side.

Absently rubbing at the blossoming bruise on her arm Rikku gives her cousin a look, “Did you… see him?” she asks, genuinely curious.

Yuna nods earnestly, a slight worried glint at not really knowing what Rikku’s insinuating.

Paine, sitting next to her, snorts.

Maybe it _wasn’t_ the brightest idea to bring her along.

“Yuna…” she says and tries to find better wording for the predicament she’s put her self in, “he was like, my dad’s age.” She whispers and frowns, putting it like that is way too dramatic and weird.

Yuna shrugs, shockingly, “I would say, like, early thirties? Your point?” and at this Rikku see’s Paine’s eyes flash in their direction.

Definitely a mistake inviting her.

“I couldn’t just text him!” she says frustratingly, “That’s too…”

“Pedestrian?” Paine supplies, making Yuna flinch. Rikku waves a hand towards her, nodding even though she’s not quiet sure if she would put it like that. It’s more like it’d be too weird if she just, started dating someone in their thirties with out an all out escapade to explain such a tremendous affair.

Yuna sighs, breaking Rikku from her weird little fantasy world that would justify her getting with Pilot guy (man?), “No one said you had to _date_ the guy, this is a _summer_ vication and all- you could pull a Grease?”

Rikku blinks, “Are you suggesting-“

Paine whistles, cutting her off, “Didn’t know you had it in you, Yuna.”

Yuna cocks her head innocently, looking at Rikku’s expressive face quizzically, “Maybe Dirty Dancing would be more accurate here, wait- does that mean someone’s going to get pregnant?” she asks quickly, but any response from one of the other girls is cut off by the emergence of their new home for the next three and a half weeks.

Rikku is _immediately_ suspicious.

She bounds out of the car and directly to the first non family faced individual.

“What is this place?” she asks, but looking at how terrified the younger man in front of her looks all of a sudden she might have turned the crazy up to an eleven for no apparent reason.

Yuna as always rescues her from yet another one of her many ill advised reactions by placing an arm around her, not looking at the man in front of them now carrying her passing family member’s bags, “Rikku, there’s nothing to be bothered about, it actually looks nicer than what was on the brochure!” she says optimistically.

“Yeah, that was before we renovated!” The man, whom Rikku nearly lost sight of under the still piling bags, seems to shout, she’s unclear because of well- the bags, “Do you guys need any-“ all of a sudden the man’s arms tremble under the strain of the carry-ons but instead of dropping all of them he just sort of lets the bags drop heavily onto his now prone form.

“Do you think he’s okay?” Rikku ask’s an already helping Yuna.

“Rikku!” Her cousin exclaims at her and she shakes her head.

“He’s the enemy!”

“What are you even talking about-“ Yuna stops so suddenly that Rikku looks around her cousin to see if the man is actually dead but finds his chest still rising. Seeing the man better let’s Rikku deduce that he’s not so much of a man but a boy their age, pretty with blond hair but over all normal.

Rikku starts to ask her cousin if she got hit by one of the stray bags but blinks instead.

Again, she can feel Paine’s eyes on them- judgingly.

The silence stretches, Yuna’s hand is suddenly reaching for the guys face that Rikku only has a split second to stop her cousin’s wrist midair, “Stop it!” she hisses and Yuna jumps back physically as the guy starts to regain consciousness.

As he rights himself he stares at the three girls in front of him, blinks tiredly, “welcome to the re- resort?” he asks, still trying to gauge his surroundings.

Simultaneously Yuna lets out an embarrassingly high pitched yet muffled exclamation, Rikku hits her forehead audibly with her palm, and Paine roles her eyes.

Before anyone can do anything more embarrassing her father’s voice cuts through the one-sided tension, “Girls! Leave that poor boy alone, your mother’s already complaining about her missing bags, let’s get a move on!”

And for once Rikku’s decision to invite Paine wasn’t in vain as the other girl drags both of them by the arm to where her father’s voice came from. Yuna still looking at the fallen boy on the floor as one of his co-worker’s rushes to his aid.

“This vacation isn’t ending up so much as a normal family holiday like you promised.” Paine says, not accusingly (because that point had made the girl not want to even come when Rikku had suggested the idea) but more humorously.

Rikku shakes her head, side eyeing her cousin at the same time, “I’m glad you find this all so funny.” She grumbles as they make it to the entrance of the reception area.

“Not funny, just interesting.” Pain shrugs and opens the door, immediately Rikku is pained and humiliated to be a part of the little scene her family’s currently making.

They’re thankfully not being rude, but Rikku knows her family is an experience and a half.

“Rikku, come here!” Her mother yells and she detaches from Paine to quickly scamper over to her mother.

“You take the little ones with the other girls, while we’ll set up everyone else’s rooms, each night the three of you will rotate sleeping in the kiddie’s room.”

Rikku opens her mouth to complain.

“And no complaining!”

Rikku closes her mouth, complaining in the solace that is her own mind.

“Now Mr. ah- you and this nice gentleman will take the kids and the girls to the other set of rooms and you will get everyone ready for dinner, understood?”

“Okay, okay, mom, got it.”

“Good!” her mother smiles, handing her over a set of keys, “I believe you’ve met before?” her mother says, confusingly- her voice is deceptively sweet and Rikku doesn’t understand until a shadow moves from the corner and her mouth goes dry.

From what emotion she couldn’t really say.

All she wishes was that the first thing out of her mouth wasn’t, “How did you get here?”

And beyond all that she wishes the twitch of his lips didn’t cause her to want to rethink her escape plan, “I ran.” is all he says.

And she promptly marches away.

She is _not_ one for _teasing_.

No matter how ruggedly hot, and mysterious, and...

And _no matter!_

 _Hormones!_ That's what she's going to blame this whole thing on.

Definitely hormones, she thinks as she tries to ignore the snort of barely concealed humor from behind her and the fact that it makes her shiver for some unknown reason.

_Hormones, hormones, hormones._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i get into these writing moods late at night when its the most difficult time for me to write coherently!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, hope you liked it! 
> 
> I'll try to update as much as I can, this is the first time I've been able to write something even comprehensible for these two and it's going to be such a slow burn if I ever manage to finish.
> 
> (also if you find anything ooc, i get it but also i have literally no other way of writing)


End file.
